Just when everyone seemed ready to settle for the runner-up honor in tonight’s final balloting for ESPN’s Bring GameDay to Your Campus Vote, Nebraska fans have hope. The second-place Huskers have cut a recent 8,000-vote gap behind leader Texas A&M to a 3,750-vote difference in the latest tally released at noon ET today. That gives us two good reasons to quote two American legends: 1) Yogi Berra, who once said “It ain’t over till it’s over” and 2) Tom Osborne, who sat at his desk at 11:30 this morning, looked at the ESPN online poll and wondered how Nebraska fans might respond in the stretch drive of a contest that ends at 11:59 p.m. ET tonight.

“I’ve always been appreciative of our fans’ loyalty,” Osborne said. “They’ve helped us sell out 318 straight games now over the last 50 years, and I never underestimate what they can do when they feel they’re needed.” As Nebraska’s Hall-of-Fame coach and current athletic director, Osborne was willing to do his part, getting his photo taken with Big Red mascot Herbie Husker, who walked out of Osborne’s office holding up four fingers to signify that Nebraska is in the fourth quarter of an important vote.

A&M continues to lead ESPN’s fan contest with 154,557 votes. Nebraska has 150,807. Here’s hoping Big Red fans reach down and give the next 12 hours the same kind of effort that Nebraska's offensive line and Cory Schlesinger showed their teammates in the fourth quarter of the Huskers’ 1995 national championship Orange Bowl win over Miami. Since 1962, Nebraska has seen 23,706,977 fans come through Memorial Stadium's gates, an ongoing NCAA record for consecutive home-game sellouts. In honor of those loyal Big Red fans, please cast your last vote in this contest this afternoon or tonight, and remember, every vote counts!